


Perspective

by flyingwargle



Category: Magic Kaito
Genre: Complete, Gen, Kaito needs a hug, Oneshot, a small fic about found family, been reading too much angst, kaito is damn lucky to have them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-14 14:00:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29172270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flyingwargle/pseuds/flyingwargle
Summary: Nakamori learns some sleight of hand to better understand Kaitou Kid and ends up understanding Kaito more.
Kudos: 33





	Perspective

Nakamori sits cross-legged in front of the low table by the television, laptop open with cards spread across the keyboard. There are other items mixed in, as well, like coins, pens, business cards, and his wallet, which he quickly whisks into his pocket after his handful of cards fly out of his hands. He sighs and turns back to the video on the screen, dragging the bar all the way back to the beginning.

On his days off, he would go golfing with friends or burn some hours at a pachinko parlor. If Aoko was free, they’d spend some father-daughter time at a nearby attraction, occasionally (rather, often) inviting Kaito along. A rest day is meant to be an opportunity for him to leave work behind, especially if it involves a pesky phantom thief dressed in white, yet here he is, holed up at home, looking up magic tricks and sleight of hand tutorial videos to better understand his enemy.

A few of his subordinates made the suggestion, and several went through with it themselves. They admitted that it helped them see heists from the thief’s perspective, though none of them continued to practice. Nakamori never had the time to do so until now, and he’s hopelessly impressed by the fluid demonstrations. All the tutorials show the actions first before breaking down each step, and he struggles to achieve the proper motion. Two hours is hardly enough time to match a practiced magician, but he hoped to be able to at least master something before Aoko comes home. She would certainly be surprised.

He sweeps the materials aside to bring his laptop closer for a break, scrolling along the sidebar to find a performance video to watch. They are from a variety of magicians with unfamiliar names, and there are also reactions to famous tricks, analyses, and revelations. A name catches his attention, and he clicks on it.

The video is over a decade old. The footage is shaky and the audio cracks and sounds muted. Nakamori nearly hits the maximum volume before he can hear a whisper of applause. The camera zooms toward the stage as a man steps into the spotlight with a bow. Although his face is pixelated, the pencil-thin moustache is enough to identify him as Kuroba Toichi.

Though they were neighbors, the fathers were not as close as their children are. Nakamori attended a few shows simply to babysit, and Toichi repaid the favor with complimentary tickets to whichever show he had. Those memories are vague, however, and Nakamori watches the magician now with narrowed eyes. He is keenly aware of when Toichi uses sleight of hand or misdirection to make the trick work, and by the end, a familiar twinge of frustration makes him rub his chin. No matter how many times he’d watch it, he still won’t be able to figure it out. At least when it comes to heists these days, he can rely on the Kid Killer to uncover the gimmicks.

With renewed fervor, he returns to the tutorial video, grabs his cards, and starts from the beginning.

The afternoon fades into early evening. He barely hears the front door, followed by a familiar call. “Aoko is home!” There’s the shuffling of slippers, and the door to the living room opens. Plastic bags rustle as they’re transferred from one hand to the other. “Dad, what are you doing?”

“Oh, Aoko, welcome back.” He looks up and examines her curious eyes. _Good._ It doesn’t look like she’s noticed the card hidden in his palm. “How was school?”

“Fine. Kaito went through the whole day without pranking anyone. Can you believe it? He said it’s because he’s planning something for next week, but Aoko doubts it. Maybe he’s finally learning how to behave!” Aoko heads for the kitchen. “What do you want to eat for dinner?”

“Anything is fine.” Nakamori stares at his card to recall the motion – move it outwards with his pinky and thumb, hold it between the thumb and index. A wrist motion would make it look like it came from midair.

“Hmmm…in that case, let’s eat hamburger steaks,” she decides. “Aoko learned a new technique the other day. They won’t fall apart that easily this time!”

He waits for her to finish putting the groceries away and hurries toward the door to change out of her uniform. “Just a minute, Aoko. I’ve got something to show you.”

“What is it?”

“Come closer.” Nakamori holds his hand out while she leans forward. He moves his fingers, and the card snaps out from behind his palm, crooked and backwards. He grins at her astonished expression.

It doesn’t last long because she breaks into a giggle. “What are you doing, Dad? Are you trying to be a magician like Kaito?”

He lets out a disgruntled huff. “No, I’m trying to learn some tricks that Kaitou Kid uses. I thought it might help me understand him better.”

“Aoko could tell you had something in your hand,” she points out. “It was curved more than your left.” She smiles as he’s caught off-guard, examining his hand positions. “Kaito always says that a magician has to make a trick look as natural as possible.”

“I’m surprised you noticed.”

“Aoko used to notice when Kaito had cards in his hands or up his sleeves. When he got better, it became harder to catch the signs.” She steps back. “Speaking of him, he’s coming over for dinner, so why don’t you ask him for help?”

Nakamori shakes his head. “I can figure it out on my own.” _Besides, I already asked him before._ He still has the lucky rabbit doll on his desk at the station, as well as a handwritten note with his advice. They’re the last things he sees before every heist, a personal reminder of how to observe and foil the thief.

Aoko returns as her father gathers the cards and kneels across from him. “Kaito taught me a simple card trick a few weeks ago. Do you want to see it?”

“Oh, sure.”

“Okay! Let’s see…” Aoko shuffles the deck and fans them out face-up in front of her. “Pick any two cards.” He obliges, choosing the three of clubs and queen of diamonds. She picks them up and squares them. “Aoko is going to deal them face-down. Say ‘stop’ whenever you want.”

She puts them down and stops when Nakamori says so. He puts the three of clubs onto the deck and Aoko repeats the process for the second card. She fans them out again. “Aoko is going to guess the card that’s beside each one.” She taps the three of clubs. “This one is…the ace of spades.” She flips it over with a victorious grin. “And the other one is…the jack of hearts.” Both are correct.

Nakamori stares. “How did you do that?”

“It’s easy! Watch.” Aoko spreads the cards face-up again. “Pick two cards again.” He selects the five of diamonds and two of spades. “Do you see the cards at each end?” One is the ten of clubs and the other is the eight of hearts. “You have to remember those. Okay, now, say ‘stop’ as Aoko deals them again.”

“Stop.”

She takes the five of diamonds to place on top. “This is when you put the deck on top of it.” The last card is the eight of hearts, so now, it’s face-down beside the face-up card. “And again, for the second one…”

He follows along, aware of the trick. “It depends on where you put the deck down, huh?”

“Yeah! It’s simple and a lot of people don’t notice it. That’s what Kaito means when he says magicians have to perform naturally. It’s to hide everything that makes the trick work.” Aoko slides the deck back to him and rises to her feet. “He also says that he pulls pranks to practice but Aoko still thinks he’s being obnoxious.”

As she heads for the kitchen, Nakamori shuffles the cards slowly. It certainly explains why the young magician was hardly without his cards during elementary and middle school. He found it a nuisance, especially during meals, when all he wanted was peace after a long day of work, and Kaito would run around pulling cards out from thin air (although Nakamori knows it was from his hands now), making objects vanish and reappear across the room, and letting his doves fly rampantly.

He starts to put everything away to hide his afternoon activity when the doorbell rings. Aoko slips out to let Kaito in, and Nakamori uses her absence to position a card in his palm, opening a newspaper so both hands are in a natural position. He lowers his head as the teens’ voices grow louder until they enter the room.

“Evening, Inspector,” Kaito says in greeting. “You had the day off today?”

“Did Aoko tell you?”

“It’s obvious – we’re eating earlier than usual, and you’re in sweats.” Nakamori sees his shrug out of the corner of his eye. “If you had work, you’d still be in your suit.”

“Join us at the table, Dad,” Aoko calls over her shoulder as she returns to the stove.

“Coming.” He folds the newspaper and sits across from Kaito, hiding his right hand on his lap while draping his left arm over the table. At least the magician is looking at his phone. “Hey, Kaito-kun, how long did it take you to master magic?”

He looks up. “Why’d you ask?”

“Just curious.”

Kaito is silent for a moment, lowering his phone before he answers, “You can master the fundamentals, but a true magician is always learning and encountering tricks that he can’t figure out. I don’t think I can say I mastered magic, not by a long shot.”

“What about your father? Do you think he mastered it?”

A shadow falls over his expression. Kaito turns away. “I think he did. There was nothing that he didn’t know or couldn’t do. That’s why…until I surpass him, he’ll always be the magician that I aspire to be.”

Nakamori nods sympathetically. Toichi’s death was a shock to the world, doubly so for his son. Although he found Kaito’s rambunctiousness and excessive magic tricks annoying, he never told him to stop because it was how he grieved and remembered.

“I never you were interested in magic.” Kaito’s soft tone hardens once more, amusement gleaming in his eyes. “Aoko told me about what you did today.”

“Oh, did she? I don’t think I did anything interesting…” Nakamori chuckles lightly while aiming a glare at his daughter. She ignores him.

“I don’t mind teaching you, Inspector, if it’d help you catch Kid.” Kaito holds his hand out, twisting his wrist to reveal an empty palm. With a swift flick of the wrist, a pen materializes between his fingers. “If you know what to look for, you might understand how his magic works better.”

“I know.” The inspector raises his hand and flicks the card out from his palm. The magician smiles in response. “If you were to compare him to your father, who do you think is better?”

Kaito blinks. “Well, uh…let’s see…my old man’s never done some of the stuff that Kid has, and, well…Kid is a thief, so all his tricks have something to do with sneaking in or out. I think…they might be about the same?”

“I see…” Nakamori straightens his card absently. “We’re dealing with a pretty skilled magician, then.”

“Looks like it.”

“Enough talk about Kaitou Kid,” Aoko cuts in as she approaches to drop off their plates. “Dad, it’s your day off, so let’s talk about something else. How about…oh! There’s a new exhibition at the museum next week. What is about, again?”

“Ancient Egypt,” Kaito answers. “One of their main artifacts is a jewel, or so their website says.”

Nakamori smirks. “If Kid sends an advanced notice, I’ll be ready this time. You better watch out, Kid! I know what kind of tricks are up your sleeves now!”

The jovial banter continues with dinner, accompanied with the occasional jab at the thief. It continues afterwards, when the trio moves to the low table to learn sleight of hand. Nakamori successfully snaps a card out fast enough for Kaito’s approval, yet when it comes to his left hand, he can barely position the card to palm. Kaito laughs, seamlessly producing cards until the entire deck is spread around them.

Stars illuminate the night sky by the time the teen heads back, and Aoko walks him out. Nakamori stands by the window with his beer, watching the lights switch on across the street. He rarely entered the Kuroba residence, but judging from its size, it has to be equal or larger to his own home. The emptiness barely waned after his wife left; he could not imagine the crushing silence that greeted the magician.

“What are you looking at?” Aoko asks behind him. He turns to her.

“Nothing. Just…Kaito-kun’s got it hard, doesn’t he?” Chikage departed almost immediately after her husband’s death, entrusting her son’s well-being to Nakamori and Aoko. They guided him through his grief, offered him warmth and comfort when the tears did not stop. Though they could not help him with his magic, they were his audience, test subjects to every new trick he came up with, regardless of if it failed or succeeded. It was a miracle that his troublesome behavior is the extent of his problematic disposition.

Aoko sighs lightly. “At least he has us.”

“Yeah.” Nakamori watches the teen’s bedroom light turn on and hopes that he plans on settling in for the night instead of staying up, as he often did.

With a flick of his wrist, his card snaps nimbly from his palm to his fingers. Even though he learned these tricks to understand an enemy, he feels like he understands Kaito more, as well.

**Author's Note:**

> have some found family fluff because I know you need it as much as I do.
> 
> trick references: aoko's [card trick](https://youtu.be/8wFgUa2yAUo) (it's the third trick) and nakamori's sleight of hand [(producing a card out of thin air)](https://youtu.be/R-1GT1cPtTM). give it a try! I need to go back to practicing haha.
> 
> hope you enjoyed it!


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